I love skating in Washington Park! It is a wonderful place to be in the early morning. The loop is 1.4 miles long and the pavement is pretty good all the way around. It is busy later in the day so I like to skate at dawn. I love skating here! It makes me happy. If you are ever in the neighborhood and want to skate, Washington park is worth the visit!

Here is my guru. Pat lives in the park. He is a good guy!

This is where the fun begins.

This is the hill that is the most fun. You are easily doing 25+ mph on this and you take a sharp left at the bottom. Look out for traffic. Pay attention!

After the fun corner downhill you wind through these gentle curves. It is easy and exciting to blast through this part of the park.

The lagoons are vibrant with lots of life.

Canada geese stop here on their migrations in abundance.

This should be a symbol for me. If you look closely you can see a Great Blue Heron hunting on the shore. It was just lucky to see one this morning.

In this photo you can kind of see the hill that caps off my loops. It takes me about 45 seconds (if I push hard) to get all the way to the top and it is a fantastic training aid! I love it! It curves back and forth like a big muscular snake all the way to the top.

Dave, talk about scenic! But whre are you hiding that gem, as in, which state?

Hey Janneman, your country is amazing too. If i didn't say it before, it's just becuase i'm green with envy. It;s so nice, it drives me to be a bad sport. So there, happy?

LOL!
Online, thanks for the laugh. Scenic doesn't really come to mind when we think about Washington Park. (Springfield, IL) It is a fantastic place to skate though! It is just an urban park with a loop of pavement. Fortunately it has some variety in elevation to give your legs a burn. I don't know that I would tell people to go out of their way to skate here. But, if you need to come on bidness or just passing through and you want a place to skate it will work for you.

Dave, are you sure that guy doesn't live.....in a van.....down by the river?

My younger brother wrestled Chris Farley in High School! That is my claim to fame. Pat lives in the park. He cleans up after people and he keeps tabs on everything going on. He is an ex cop and very observant. It is just sad and pathetic and depressing that this is his life now. He needs a life altering experience. I have been trying to talk to him about skating and how it can change a person's life for the better. How a Sunday morning skate with the sun coming up through the trees can set a person straight for a whole week of work and stress. I just don't get it...

Now that I own a van I am worried that someday I may live down by a river. As long as I can afford new wheels and bearings I should be alright though. Can I move in with you if I need to? Thanks in advance!